Trousers creaser automatic lock



Aug. 28, 1962 Filed April 20, 1960 //v I/ENTO 2: l. A wesuc: J. IVE/E R,

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ATToRn/E Patented Aug. 28, 1962 Fine 3,951,518 TRGUSERS CREAER AUTQMATIC LUCK Lawrence J. Meyer, St. Charles, Md, assigncr to Lee- Rowan Company, St. Louis, Me, a corporation of Missouri Filed Apr. 20, 1960, Ser. No. 23,399 1 Claim. ((33. 287-58) This invention relates to improvements in locks for trousers creasers and the like and, in particular, is concerned with a lock which is one way in operation, i.e., permitting the trousers creasers sections to move in the expanded directions at all times, but automatically locking the trousers creasers sections against contraction or relative movement towards one another unless the lock member is positively operated.

In the past, trousers creasers have been provided with a variety of different types of locks. It will be appreciated that trousers creasers are conventionally made of opposed elongated U-shaped frames in which the legs of the Us are connected to one another and can be relatively moved either toward or away from one another to accommodate trouser legs of varying width. These trousers creasers, when expanded within the trousers legs, are to be locked into position. Locks in the past have been of a nature that lock the relative sections to one another so that they cannot be moved in either direction, or have been complicated in nature and construction destroying the essential simplicity requiredin a trousers creaser.

By means of this invention there has been provided a trousers creaser automatic lock which always permits the trousers creaser to be expanded without any manual operation of the lock itself. However, by nature of the construction of the lock the trousers creaser cannot be contracted or reduced in the effective width without manual operation of the lock member. Thus, the trouser creaser once inserted and confined in the trousers leg is always maintained in the rigid condition, unless purposely operated to contract the trousers creaser.

The lock of this invention is extremely simple in construction and operation, which is highly desired in trousers creasers due to their use by relatively unskilled users. Essentially, the lock comprises a bowed portion upon one of the sliding sections. The flat section lying underneath the bowed portion is provided with a locking member, which has an end fitting underneath the bowed portion. This locking member is a flat plate-like element that fits upon the underneath section through an opening provided in the locking member, and is further provided with an upper end which is contacted by the bowed portion when the trousers creasers sections are tended to be moved toward one another in such a manner that the locking member is bent over and jammed or locked upon the section upon which it rides. The locking member is further provided with a leg portion at its upper end and fitting within the bowed portion and against an opposite underneath side so that it is contacted when the ections are moved apart to push the locking member freely along the underneath section.

Accordingly, it will be seen that the automatic lock of this invention is very simple in its construction and operation. The locking device employs only a bowed section of one of the normal trousers creasers legs, which can be formed by appropriate bending and forming apparatus without any additional modification, and a locking element made of a flat stamped piece of metal having an opening that may be punched out. The leg portion of the locking member can be very conveniently formed by conventional forming and bending devices as will be readily appreciated. No other structure is required and the simiplicity of construction and operation will be readily apparent to provide an automatic locking device that is strong, simple to construct, easy to use, and ecow nomical in cost.

Accordingly, it is a primary object of this invention to provide a simple, rugged, and economical automatic lock for trousers creasers in which the trousers creasers arms can be expanded without any operation of the lock and in which contraction is automatically prevented by the lock until the lock is operated.

It is a further object of this invention to provide an automatic lock for trousers creasers, and the like, by providing a bowed portion of one of the trousers creasers arms and a simple plate-like locking element having an opening through which the other trousers creasers arm fits with no other structure required.

Yet a further object of this invention is to provide an automatic lock for trousers creasers in which the lock comprises a bowed portion of one of the trousers creasers arm and a simple locking element having a leg fitting within the bowed portion and being positioned in slidable relation upon the other of the trousers creasers arm in such a manner that the relative arms can be freely expanded with respect to one another but is automatically locked in a contracting position until the lock is operated, at which time the two arms can be closed or contracted relative to one another by a slight pressure applied upon the locking element.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a simple, economical, rugged, and easy to operate automatic locking device for trousers creasers, and the like.

Further objects of this invention will appear in the detailed description which follows and will be further apparent to those skilled in the art.

For the purpose of illustration of this invention, there is shown in the accompanying drawings a preferred embodiment. It is to be understood that these illustrations are for the purpose of example only, and that the invention is not limited thereto.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a view in side elevation of a trousers creaser provided with the lock of this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary bottom plan view showing the trousers creaser with their arms in contracted position;

FIGURE 3 is a view taken similarly to FIGURE 2, but showing the arms in expanded position;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view in elevation but with part of the locking element in vertical section showing the locking device and showing the manner of operation for expanding the arms;

FIGURE 5 is a view in section taken on the line 55 of FIGURE 4 showing the positioning of the locking element in the trousers arm structure;

FIGURE 6 is a view taken similarly to FIGURE 4, but showing the locking action when the trousers creasers arms are tended to be moved toward one another in a 0011- tracting position; and

FIGURE 7 is a plan view of a trousers creaser with arrows showing how it is expanded and contracted.

The trousers creaser is generally indicated by the reference numeral 10 in FIGURES 1, 2, 3 and 7. The trousers creaser is made up of two generally U-shaped members 12 and '14 having opposed arms connected to one another by clamps so that by pressing one of the U-shaped members toward another the trousers creaser may be expanded or contracted.

Thus, the U-shaped member 12, has arms 16 and 18 and at the ends guides 29 and 22 are provided, which receive mating arms 24 and 26 of U-shaped member 14. Likewise, the ends of the arms 24 and 26 are provided with guides 28 and30 which receive the arms 16 and 18, respectively.

A locking device generally indicated by the reference numeral 32 is provided at the top and the bottom of the trousers creaser. This locking device cooperates with the relatively slidable arms 16 and 24 at the top of the device and with the arms 18 and 22 at the bottom of the trousers creaser. The construction is identical for both positions.

The locking device 32 is more particularly shown in FIGURES 1-5. 'It comprises generally a bowed portion 34 provided in arm 24 at the top and a locking element 36 slidably positioned upon arm 16. The bowed portion is in the general form of a truncated triangle having a first converging side 38 and a second converging side 43, with the two sides being joined by a horizontal top side 42.

The locking element, as is best shown in FIGURES 46, is made of a rigid piece of material, preferably metal. *It is made in a generally L-shaped configuration with a lock element 44 being connected at an obtuse angle to a leg portion 46. It will be noted that the lock element has an opening 48, which is of the same general configuration as the cross-Section of arm 16, but being slightly larger so as to provide a sliding fit. The leg portion, which is joined to the lock element at the top end thereof, extends horizontally underneath the top side 42 of the bowed portion so as to be closely adjacent to the sloping side 40. This makes it possible for the bowed portion to contact the end of the leg portion of the locking device and move it along in sliding position on the arm 16 when moved in the direction of the arrow shown in FIGURE 4. It will also be noted that the bottom end of the locking element 44 extends substantially underneath the arm 16 to provide a finger piece 50, which may be operated by the user to unlock the locking device when the trousers creasers are desired to be contracted or unlocked.

Operation The operation of the locking device of this invention is extremely simple. When the trousers creasers are to be expanded, no operation of the locking device is required at all. Thus, when the arms 16 and 24 are desired to be moved away from one another, as in the position of the arrows shown in FIGURE 4, the arms are merely spread apart.

.In this operation of expanding the arms the side 40 of the bowed portion 34 of the arm 24 contacts the end of the leg element and slides the locking device along the arm 16. The locking device thus slides freely along the arm and does not bind. It will be noted that the arcuate arrow shown at the bottom of the locking element 44 indicates the general tendency of movement of the locking element, which is in a position to oppose any possible jamming.

When the trousers creasers have forces applied upon them, tending to contract the arms of the trousers creasers or push them together, the locking device will automatically lock. Thus, by reference to FIGURE 6, it will be seen that such a force isindicated by the dotted arrow overlying arm 24. When such force is present, the

sloping side 38 of the bowed portion will engage the top end of the locking element 44. This engagement locks the locking element in the direction of the top dotted arcuate arrow directed counterclockwise shown at the bottom of the locking element to cause it to jam and lock upon arm 16. Continued force in the direction of the arrow to tend to contract the arms and move them together is resisted by the locking engagement, above described, and no movement is possible.

When the locking device is desired to be unlocked and the arms contracted and moved together, the locking device is moved in the direction of the lower arcuate arrow directed clockwise, shown at the bottom of the locking element in FIGURE 6. This will cause the locking element to move away from the jammed position. Then, by simultaneous operation of the locking element toward the full-bodied arrow position, i.e., the clockwise position as shown in FIGURE 6, and by continued movement of the arm together as in the position of the dotted arrow at the top of the arm 24, contraction and movement of the arms together is effected.

It will be apparent, accordingly, that there has been provided a locking device that resists accidental unlocking or contraction of the arms of the trousers creaser. For complete contraction and movement together of the arms, both a positive and continued application of the locking element is required coupled with the movement of the arms to the contracted position. On the other hand, when the trousers creaser is desired to be expanded, no operation whatsoever is required upon the locking element. The arms are merely pulled apart and expanded.

The instant invention finds particular application in trousers creasers because of the simplicity of operation. It will be readily appreciated that this use of trousers creasers is one that merely calls for the emplacement of the trousers creasers within a trousers leg and then expanding the trousers creaser to the limits of the width of the leg. Once this has been done, no locking engagement is required, since the automatic lock resists any contracting of the trousers creaser. When the trousers creaser is desired to be removed after the trousers have been properly creased, after a period of time, the user merely operates the locking element in the manner previously described and pushes on the opposed arms of the trousers creaser to contract the creaser to a position where it can be readily removed.

Although this automatic locking device of the instant invention has been particularly described with respect to a trousers creaser where the primary use is contemplated, it will be readily apparent that it may also be used in other automatic locking environments. Thus, wherever two elongated relatively movable sections are joined together in the manner shown and described, locking can be effected in one position and free expansion without any requirement of operation of the locking device can be effected in the opposite position.

There has been provided by the instant invention a strong and rugged automatic locking device which requires only a simply formed plate-like locking elment in combination with a bowed portion of one of the slidable arms, which makes possible a very simple and economical lock. The automatic locking device is also one that can be operated by any user without any complicated manipulation, which is of great importance in this field.

Various changes and modifications may be made in this invention as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications are within the scope and teaching of this invention as defined by the claim appended hereto.

What is claimed is:

An automatic lock for a trousers creaser having two elongated relatively movable sections and guides at the ends of said sections receiving each section to hold the sections together in slidable relation, said lock comprising a bowed portion in a first one of said sections and a lock element fitted upon the second one of said sections underneath said bowed portion, said bowed portion being comprised of opposed first and second upwardly converging sides connected by a substantially flat top side, said lock element being comprised of a rigid plate-like material having a locking portion provided with an opening conforming to the cross-section of said second one of said sections and having an upper end connected at an obtuse angle to the locking portion and fitting into the bowed portion of the first section and a lower end extending substantially beyond the second section and being operable by a user, said locking portion being substantially flat and positioned upon the second portion at 6 and obtuse angle underneath and engageable at its upper end with said first side of the bowed portion, said upper end of the locking portion being extended closely adjacent to and being engageable by the second side of said bowed 5 portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 10 2,294,967 Eberhardt Sept. 8, 1942 2,504,188 Eberhardt Apr. 18, 1950 2,557,892 Rowan June 19, 1951 

